Olympic Peninsula
Declared a national monument in 1909 and a national park in 1938, the 1406-sq-mile Olympic National Park shelters one of the world's few temperate…
Must-see attractions in Washington
Northwest African American Museum
The CD, Madrona & Madison Park
Small, concise and culturally valuable, NAAM opened in 2008 after more than 30 years of planning. It occupies the space of an old school, which, until the…
Southeastern Washington
Fifty-four miles north of Walla Walla and 83 miles west of Pullman, off Hwy 261, this jaw-droppingly magnificent waterfall tumbles 198ft down a craggy,…
San Juan Islands
Saved from possible development when it was bought for $18.5 million as public land in 2007, Orcas' second mountain (rising to 1519ft) was in private…
Washington Cascades
Windy Ridge Viewpoint is a highlight of the remote eastside entrance to Mt St Helens. Here visitors get a palpable, if eerie, sense of the destruction…
San Juan Islands
Clinging to the island's rocky west coast, this beautiful park overlooks the deep Haro Strait and is reputedly one of the best places in the world to view…
North Cascades
Ross Lake stretches across 23 miles north toward the Canadian border. In keeping with the wild terrain, it's accessible only by trail or water. Part of…
Spokane
This park, 6 miles northwest of downtown Spokane, consists of 10,000 acres of protected forest and trails where you can run, walk or cycle to your heart's…
Seattle
Seattle’s most popular piece of public art, Waiting for the Interurban, is cast in recycled aluminum and depicts six people waiting for a train that never…
North Cascades
The wildest of all Pacific Northwest wildernesses, the lightly trodden, 1000-sq-mile North Cascades National Park (inaugurated in 1968) has no major…
Seattle
The Fremont Troll is an outlandish sculpture that lurks beneath the north end of the Aurora Bridge at N 36th St. The troll's creators – artists Steve…
Washington Cascades
Situated at the end of Hwy 504 and looking directly into the mouth of the Mt St Helens crater, the observatory has exhibits that depict the geologic…
Mt St Helens Silver Lake Visitor Center
Washington Cascades
Situated 5 miles east of Castle Rock, this center is the best introduction to Mt St Helens National Volcanic Monument. There's a classic film and various…
Downtown, Pike Place & Waterfront
Seattle's famous gum wall is one of those cultural monuments you can smell before you even see it. The sweet aroma of chewed gum wafts from this strip of…
Future of Flight Aviation Center & Boeing Tour
Around Seattle
You don't need to be an aviation enthusiast to enjoy a trip to the Future of Flight Aviation Center & Boeing Tour in the city of Everett, 25 miles north…
Around Seattle
Deception Pass State Park straddles the eponymous steep-sided water chasm that flows between Whidbey and Fidalgo Islands, and incorporates lakes, islands,…
Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve
Around Seattle
This national historical reserve comprises 17,400 acres encompassing working farms, sheltered beaches, two state parks (with excellent campsites near the…
Olympic National Park (Coastal Strip)
Olympic National Park
This section of Olympic National Park consists of a 73-mile stretch of wilderness along the coast, much of it inaccessible unless you hike your way in…
Downtown, Pike Place & Waterfront
Rivaling the Space Needle and the Museum of Pop Culture for architectural ingenuity, Seattle Central Library looks like a giant diamond that's dropped in…
Olympic National Park
The enchanting Quinault River Valley is one of Olympic National Park's least crowded corners. Clustered around the deep-blue glacial waters of Lake…
Queen Anne & Lake Union
Amid the glittering Beverly Hills–like homes of Highland Dr, mere commoners can enjoy eagle’s-eye views of downtown Seattle and Elliott Bay (and Mt…
Seattle
Seattle's most manicured park sits atop Capitol Hill and is named for US volunteers in the 1898 Spanish-American War. While wandering among its leafy…
Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area
Northeastern Washington
Dry, sunny weather prevails here, drawing people to camp and play on Lake Roosevelt's southern white-sand beaches. As the 130-mile lake inches its way…
Spokane
The site of the 1974 World's Fair and Exposition, this downtown park has numerous highlights, including a 17-point Sculpture Walk and the scenic Spokane…
Seattle
An interesting hybrid museum covering both natural history and indigenous cultures of the Pacific Rim. Inside you'll find, arguably, Washington's best…
The CD, Madrona & Madison Park
A riotously popular place in the summer with a grassy slope for lounging and sunbathing, two tennis courts, a swimming raft floating in the lake, and…
Queen Anne & Lake Union
Honoring Seattle's historical, aquatic and Native American antecedents, this one-of-a-kind museum and enthusiasts' center features vintage and replica…
Ballard & Discovery Park
Seattle’s fishing fleet resides at Fishermen’s Terminal, in a wide recess in the ship canal called Salmon Bay on the south side of the Ballard Bridge…
Olympic National Park
If you're heading anticlockwise on the Olympic loop from Port Angeles toward Forks, one of the first scenic surprises to leap out at you is luminous Lake…
Olympic Peninsula
This attractive park located within Port Townsend's city limits is the remains of a large fortification system constructed in the 1890s to protect the…
Central Washington
Swimming, boating and fishing entertain summertime visitors to Lake Wenatchee, 23 miles north of the city of Wenatchee (and actually much closer to…
Whatcom Museum of History & Art
Bellingham
This revamped museum is spread over three buildings: historic Whatcom City Hall (built in 1892), the adjacent Syre Education Center (photo archives, open…
Downtown, Pike Place & Waterfront
Though not on a par with Seattle's nationally lauded Woodland Park Zoo, the aquarium – situated on Pier 59 in an attractive wooden building – is probably…
Seattle
Urban reclamation has no greater monument in Seattle than Gas Works Park. The former power station here produced gas for heating and lighting from 1906 to…
Pioneer Square, International District & SoDo
One of the pillars upon which Seattle built its early fortunes, the old Great Northern Railroad depot, was given a much-needed face-lift in the early…
Seattle
The architecturally minded will be interested in the University of Washington’s Suzzallo Library. Designed by Carl Gould in 1926, this bibliophile’s dream…
Around Seattle
Seattle's parks offer a welcome reprieve from the city's dazzling, yet exhausting, industrialization. Those looking for a wilder slice of nature should…
Washington
Washington's Beacon Rock, the core of an ancient volcano, is a prominent state park about 7 miles west of the Bridge of the Gods. It offers hiking,…
Pioneer Square, International District & SoDo
Seattle claims its Yesler Way was the basis for the term ‘skid road’, which became 'skid row' – logs would ‘skid’ down the steeply sloped road linking a…
North Cascades
Just north of Concrete are two reservoirs formed by a pair of dams on the Baker River. Washington's largest colony of nesting osprey is found at Lake…
